Agents rethink quitting

Wednesday

Apr 25, 2012 at 12:01 AMApr 25, 2012 at 11:25 AM

THE WASHINGTON POST

WASHINGTON — Some Secret Service employees accused of misconduct in the Colombian prostitution scandal are privately contending that their conduct didn't warrant dismissal because senior managers tolerated similar behavior during earlier official trips, according to people familiar with the employees' thinking.

Several of the men who agreed to resign under pressure last week are also considering reversing their decisions and fighting to keep their jobs, said people knowledgeable about the case.

Those close to the accused employees said that in an effort to fight for their jobs they could opt to divulge details of how colleagues spent some of their downtime on presidential trips — drinking heavily, visiting strip clubs and cavorting with women for hire.

"Of course it has happened before," said one agent not implicated in the matter, remarking on the Secret Service's history of occasionally licentious partying. "This is not the first time. It really only blew up in this case because the" U.S. Embassy "was alerted."

President Barack Obama, visiting the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill yesterday, faced questions from late-night host Jimmy Fallon about the quality of the president's protectors. Obama stressed that the actions of a few should not overshadow the dedication of the agency.

"The Secret Service, these guys are incredible," Obama said, according to a press pool report of his visit. "They protect me, they protect our girls. A couple of knuckleheads shouldn't detract from what they do. What they were thinking, I don't know. That's why they're not there anymore."